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What do you use for your project proposal?

Bronze Contributor

I'm Working on my first big project proposal it's going to put 5 figures into my wallet. I'm nervous buts it's a good thing. I usually use word documents edit: PDF for my project proposals but for this project it doesn't seem professional enough. What do you guys and girls use for your project proposals?

Bronze Contributor

IMO, you should send it through as a PDF attachment to your main message, whether that's via email or some other messaging service.

You should use a nice font - I like Open Sans for general use... See what you think.

I'd also consider including a simple but stylish cover sheet - maybe have your name/logo and the client/project name, etc.

You're probably fine with the proposal itself, but make sure to include the overall cost, scope of work, communication arrangements (methods and time), estimated time frames, policies for revisions and maintenance... Whatever you think they need to know to make an informed decision. Keep it focused on the benefits they'll get (e.g. a lead generating site or whatever).

Gold Contributor

I picked up a subscription to nusii.com when it was on appsumo. I like it so far, but I don't know if I would pay full price for it. I like the style/concept though, so I would suggest something similar.
The main benefit is it's all electronic, so the client can accept online and you can even put a deposit option in if you want.

Always happy to answer (US-based) tax and accounting questions, feel free to PM me or check out CareCPA.com
Areas of expertise include Ecommerce and Real Estate - check out CareComCPA.com for e-commerce-specific information.

Bronze Contributor

I picked up a subscription to nusii.com when it was on appsumo. I like it so far, but I don't know if I would pay full price for it. I like the style/concept though, so I would suggest something similar.
The main benefit is it's all electronic, so the client can accept online and you can even put a deposit option in if you want.

Depends on what you need. I know you can create sections and save them, then layer them into different proposals to save retyping the info.
You can also create pricing sections so clients can choose from different options. Other than that, I haven't gotten too far into it.

Always happy to answer (US-based) tax and accounting questions, feel free to PM me or check out CareCPA.com
Areas of expertise include Ecommerce and Real Estate - check out CareComCPA.com for e-commerce-specific information.

90% coffee, 10% everything else

Not in your industry but for my proposals, I have a Word doc that I print to PDF and send to any potential customers. It has a cover page and about us page before any details. I also have a header running across each page to be more uniform. I keep one topic per page and even if I don't use up the whole page, I move the next topic to the next page. This keeps things from looking cluttered and it reads nicely on someone's screen. At the end, I have two pages with my credentials and other final marketing spiels. It seems to do the trick.

Most of my proposals are done online but on the off chance I would meet a potential client in person, I would probably get it printed on nice resume paper at Staples and then put it in a report cover and then include some other marketing misc stuff I have.

I totally agree with that. Don't sell in the email, only in the proposal itself.
The email cover note should be as short as possible, something like this:

Subject: Proposal attached for Widget Central project

Mr. C. and Team,
I've attached The Scuur Group's proposal for the Widget Central project.
The information shouldn't be a surprise based on our conversations. However, you might need a couple of days to review it. I'll call you Wednesday morning to see if you have any questions, or you are welcome to contact me earlier if there's anything that needs to be clarified.
Best regards,
Bob Scurr, President
The Scuur Group